


Aulë's Project

by AllonsyMiddleEarth



Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Ainur - Freeform, F/M, Valar - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-28
Updated: 2014-09-28
Packaged: 2018-02-19 04:25:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2374475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllonsyMiddleEarth/pseuds/AllonsyMiddleEarth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>So Aulë and Yavanna were probably married before the Ainur took physical forms so wedding rings were probably not a thing, and precious metals might not even have been a thing at all but… it’s cute.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aulë's Project

"Aulë? Has something happened?" Manwë paused in the doorway to Aulë’s forge, surprised by the mess. Materials and various metals were strewn everywhere, and the Lord of Crafts stomped between them, looking more distraught than Manwë had ever seen him. 

  
"Nothing," Aulë growled, hardly sparing Manwë a glance before throwing something on the fire that made it glow more red hot than before.   
  
"What are you making to cause you this much distress?" Manwë ventured towards him and peered at the materials on Aulë’s workbench.   
  
"It is-" He paused. "Something for Yavanna."   
  
"Are you making her a ring?" Manwë started, and then realization dawned on him and a grin spread across his face. Perhaps he and Varda would no longer be the only married couple among the Valar! "Aulë…!"   
  
"Do not say anything!" Aulë growled, but a hint of a smile was visible beneath his beard. "I do not want anyone to possibly overhear and ruin the surprise."  
  
"You have my word," Manwë said solemnly, then grinned again as he watched Aulë pour some molten metal into a mold.   
  
A moment later, though, the smith growled and cast it aside, watching it crash to the stone floor. Aulë cursed and sat on his workbench, glaring at the mess on the floor.   
  
"I was wrong, gold does not look right at all… I can not give her a  _gold_  ring.” _  
  
_ He stood again and returned to the fires.   
  
"Aulë, I am sure she will like anything you make her," Manwë continued, right through the glare Aulë shot him. "it will certainly not affect her answer if you use the ‘wrong’ color metal."   
  
"That is not the  _point.”_ Aulë grumbled, pouring silver into a mold this time. “I do not want to give her something that is not my best work… do you think this silver looks good? I know I will use green jewels, and I am shaping the edges into leaves…”  
  
"Silver looks wonderful," Manwë told the smith firmly. "Yavanna will love it."   
  
Aulë shook his head and kept his eyes on his work. Manwë sat across from him, watching what Aulë was doing. At least this ring was allowed to cool instead of being thrown across the forge, but Aulë continued to frown at it.  
  
"Silver looks better… but the band is so thick, why did I do that? It looks terrible." Aulë mused unhappily. He picked up some device Manwë couldn’t name and began to shave down the sides.   
  
"It looks delicate enough… now to fix the leaves." Aulë murmured. Manwë knew Aulë wasn’t asking for a response, so he simply watched in silence. Aulë worked for some time making leaves on the sides of the ring, and engraving little patterns inside.   
  
Then he stood and gathered tiny gems he had set aside, white and green, and worked to set them in the silver. Tiny shimmering green stones sat on the edges of the leaf patterns, then the white led the way to and framed a larger, emerald stone at the center.  
  
Aulë sat back and stared at the finished product for a long while, frowning slightly, and said nothing.   
  
"The green is beautiful," Manwë offered softly. "It looks just like her eyes."   
  
Aulë smiled at it. “That was the goal.”   
  
"When will you give it to her?"   
  
"I do not know." Aulë’s smile faded. "Making it was the easy part."

Manwë had to raise his eyebrows at  _"easy,"_ his eyes sweeping over the forge where Aulë’s first attempts at rings were all strewn about the floor surrounded by many tools and materials he had thrown. It would take an age to clean.

"She’s always been better at being romantic than I am," Aulë sighed.   
  
"Take her for a walk in her forests, she always loves it there?" Manwë suggested.   
  
"She does, but then I have to compete for her attention with every tree, leaf, bird, and bug out there. Not that I usually mind, and she finds a similar problem with me when in my forges, I fear, but for this…"   
  
"Take her to a beach, instead. You and Ulmo have been working on some magnificent waterside cliffs, have you not? Tell her you wish to show them to her."  
  
"That is a nice idea," Aulë said thoughtfully. "I think I will! Thank you, brother. Any chance you would like to help me clean my forge first?"


End file.
